Electrically operable chance game



P 4, 1962 F. AUMULLER 3,052,472

ELECTRICAL-LY OPERABLE CHANCE GAME Filed May 10, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet l [NVENTOR Ta? WM ATTORNEY Sept. 4, 1962 F, AUMULLER 3,052,472

ELECTRICALLY OPERABLE CHANCE GAME Filed May 10, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 FIG. 7

ATTORNEY Se t. 4, 1962 F. AUMULLER 3,052,472

ELECTRICALLY OPERABLE CHANCE GAME Filed May 10, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR ATTORNEY nite States This invention relates to an electrically operated automatic chance game which comprises a disc or pointer, which after the insertion of a coin, is driven by an electric motor to rotate over compartment contacts arranged in a circle, and in which pairs of normally open contacts, which can be arbitrarily operated by hand, are connected in series with the automatically operated compartment contacts and are associated each with one or several compartments of a selection plan, a result 'being indicated in response to the closing of series connected compartment contacts and arbitrarily operable pairs of normally open contacts.

Such automatic chance game machines enable under certain rules the making of a selection and, after the termination of the game, an automatic indication of the result i.e., the declaration of one or more winners under the rules of the game.

It is an object of the invention to provide an automatic chance game machine which is simple in operation and yet ensures a perfect control of the compartments in which selections have been made and of the course of the game whereas misuse by the player is prevented.

According to the invention the arbitrarily operable normally open pairs of contacts can be closed by consisting of contacts of a stepping switch, a rotary selector, a dial, pressure switch contacts disposed below holes of the selection plan or the like.

The arbitrarily operable normally open pairs of contacts are desirably arranged in the form of pressure switches below holes in the selection plan and are arranged to be closed downwardly by the application of a weight consisting, e.g., of a ball Whereas they are arranged to be pivotally or slidably moved out of the range of the holes to release the balls after the termination of the game.

The provision of pressure switches in association with a selection plan enables the performance of the game with the automatic machine in a manner which is highly similar to the performance of the game under the control of a controller and improves the arrangement for the players and prevents unauthorized manipulations.

According to a further embodiment the selection plan is subdivided according to a system of coordinates and provided with control lamps and pressure switches which are arranged according to the same system of coordinates which are associated with the selection plan.

In that embodiment of the invention in which the arbitrarily operable pairs of contacts are arranged below holes of a selection plan, a plate having the same arrangement of holes and consisting of transparent material is slidably arranged over the selection plan to cover the arbitrarily operable pairs of contacts and is coupled to a device which starts an operating device for the nonarbitrarily operable contacts.

Another important feature of the invention resides in that the non-arbitrarily operable pairs of contacts comatent prise fixed and movable contacts. The non-arbitrarily operable pairs of contacts consist preferably of fixed contacts arranged in rows and a contact bar which is movably arranged over the rows of contacts. The contact bar may be arranged according to the invention on a rotatable disc, in which case the rows of fixed contacts extend radially with respect to the axis of rotation of the disc.

Within the scope of the invention a drive motor for moving the movable contacts is provided, which is started by a player whereas its running time cannot be influenced by the player. In one embodiment of the invention an electric motor is provided for moving the movable contacts and a thermocouple heated by the motor itself is provided to control the running time of the motor.

According to the invention the device carrying the movable contacts is provided with a suitable locking device of the electromagnetc type for stopping over a fixed contact or a row of contacts.

To enable an indication of a result the invention contemplates the provision of relays which are connected in circuit by means of a rotary selector, which produces pulses differing in dependence on the result. In one embodiment of the invention a stepping switch and calculating relays connected in circuit by said stepping switch are associated with this rotary selector.

According to a preferred development of the invention the normally open contacts which are arbitrarily operable by hand are constituted by a stepping switch, a rotary selector, a dial or the like, the brush or contact arm of which is connected in series with a selecting key, with which the preferably self-holding selector relay associated with the respective contact of the selector can be operated, each of the contacts of the stepping switch or the like being associated with one or several compartments of the selection plan and arranged to be closed when a selection is made in the associated compartment, which causes a simultaneous illumination of this compartment by a lamp which is switched on by the selector relay.

The operation of the selector causes the illumination of certain compartments of the selection plan. If the player wants to make a selection in a compartment which is illuminated, he needs only press the selecting key to make a stake in the compartment which is just illuminated. If a self-holding selector relay is provided, the compartment in which a selection has been made continues to be illuminated also when the selector has been moved. Selections can be made in additional compartments after the insertion of additional coins. Only when all selections have been made does the player start the drive motor.

Whereas the selector may consist of a stepping switch it is desirable according to the invention to provide as a selector a motor selector or the like which is operable by a push button and which continues to run as long as the push button is pressed. During the running of the motor the different compartments are illuminated in succession. When that compartment is illuminated in which the player wants to make a selection he must release the push button to stop the movement of the selector and must make the selection by pressing the selecting key.

In addition to the contact path connected to the selector relay the selector has suitably an additional contact path, the contacts of which are connected individually or in groups to one contact terminal of one of several changeover contacts each of which is operable by a selector relay and the other contact terminal of which is connected to one or several contacts belonging to the first contact path and connected to the selector relay, whereas the tongue of said change-over contact is adapted to be connected in series with one or more compartment illuminating lamps to that terminal of the source of current to which the contact arm of the first contact path can be connected by the selecting key and whereas that contact terminal of the change-over contact which is connected to the contacts of the second contact path is adapted to be connected by means of the contact arm of the second contact path to the other terminal of the source of current and the contact terminal of the change-over contact connected to the contacts of the first contact path is connected by the selector relay to said other terminal of the source of current. It is thus achieved that the several compartments are brightly illuminated first during the movement of the selector whereas they are less brightly illuminated when the movement of the selector is continued after the selecting key has been operated, so that a difference will always exist between selected and unselected compartments. This feature ensures also a dim continued shining of the compartment illuminating lamps because the selector relays are self-holding in this arrangement.

Further details and advantageous developments of the invention are apparent from the drawing, which shows some embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic longitudinal sectional view showing an automatic chance game machine.

FIG. 2 shows this machine in a top plan view.

FIG. 3 is a simplified circuit diagram of the machine.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show an additional example.

1 FIG. 6 shows the circuit diagram of a self-holding selector relay.

FIG. 7 shows a circuit diagram of an example of an automatic chance game machine according to the invention embodying the circuit of FIG. 6, and

FIG. 8 shows a circuit diagram of another illustrative embodiment.

The automatic chance game machine shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 consists, eig, of a box 1, on the top of which a selection plan 2 and an indicating device 3 are arranged. In the embodiment shown the selection plan 2 comprises the actual plan 4 and a cover plate 5 consisting, e.g., of glass. The plan 4 and the cover plate 5 have registering holes 6 and 7, respectively, and contacts 8 are arranged below said holes. Balls 9, e.g., may be used to close the contacts 8. The contacts 8 are designed to respond only to balls 9 having a certain weight. Besides, the holes 6 and 7 have a size corresponding to that of the balls 9. Before the beginning of the game the balls 9 can be taken from a tray 14 after a coin has been inserted into a slot to close a contact 11, which delivers a pulse to a device for blocking a ball trough 13.

After the selection has been made the transparent plate 5 is displaced, e.g., by means of a knob 15, to prevent further selections. At the same time a contact 16 is closed which causes the energization of a drive motor 17 for the rotatable indicating device 3. Contacts 18 are arranged, e.g., in radial rows below the indicating device 3. A contact bar 19' cooperating with the contacts 18 is arranged on the underside of the indicating device 3. A device 20 ensures that the indicating device 3 will always be held in a position in which the bar 19 closes a row of contacts 18. If the drive motor 17 consists of an electric motor, a thermocouple 21 may be provided to deenergize the motor in dependence on the temperature rise of the motor so that the running time of the indicating device 3 will depend on the intervals between the games.

FIG. 3 shows by way of example a circuit diagram of a simplified embodiment. As in FIG. 1, a selection plan 4 and a cover plate 5 are provided which have holes 6 and 7, respectively, which are vertically superimposed at the beginning of the game. Below each of the holes 7 of the selection plan 4 a contact 8 is disposed, which is in series with a contact 18 disposed on the circumference of a circle. Two associated contacts 8 and 18 are connected in series with a result indicating relay 22, which is connected to a contact of a stepping switch 25, the switch arm of which closes the circuit by means of a relay contact The relay contact 30 is a normally closed contact and is operable by the relay 31, which is connected in series with the drive motor 17, a thermal switch 21 and the contact 16, which is operable when the cover plate 5 is pushed by means of the knob 15.

If the selection has been made at the beginning of the game, e.g., by inserting a ball 9 through the holes 6, 7 onto one of the contacts 8 or into the compartment hearing the designation 1x, which indicates that the result will be of unit value. If the indicating device 3 reaches the same position, the knob 15 is pressed by hand to move the cover plate 5 in the direction of the arrow in order to prevent an insertion of additional balls and close the contact 16. The closing of the contact 16 completes the circuit of the drive motor 17, whereby the arm 32 is rotated, which serves at the same time as a pointer. A temperature rise of the thermal switch 21 a connected in series with the drive motor 17 is caused by the current with which the drive motor is energized and after some time causes the thermal switch to interrupt the circuit of the drive motor 17 so that the same comes to a standstill. The rotation of the arm 32 causes the closing of contacts 18 to be wiped over in succession. In order to prevent a response of the result indicating relays 22 during this rotation, the relay 31 is also connected in series with the drive motor 17 and is arranged to open the normally closed contact 30 so as to interrupt the circuit of the result indicating relays 22 when the relay 31 is energized, i.e., during the operation of the drive motor 17. The relay 31 constitutes a safety feature because the circuit of all result indicating relays could also be interrupted by moving the stepping switch 25 at the beginning of the game to a position 0, in which none of the result indicating relays 22 is energized.

If the temperature rise of the thermal switch 21 causes the drive motor 17 to come to a standstill when the arm 32 is in a position in which it closes one of the contacts 18 (e.g., in position 1x) and if the associated contact 8 is closed by the insertion of a ball 9, the circuit of the appertaining result indicating relay 22 is interrupted only because the stepping switch 30 is in position 0. The normally closed contact 30 is closed because the relay 31 has been deenergized when the drive motor 17 has come to a standstill.

If the stepping switch 25 is operated, e.g., by hand, and is in position 1x the result indicating relay 22 associated with the position 1x will be energized to operate a slide, which ejects a token of unit value. It is apparent that the respective result indicating relay 22 can respond during the stepping of the stepping switch 25 only if a ball has been placed into the hole belonging thereto at the beginning of the game and if the arm 32 comes to a standstill in the appertaining position at the same time. If selections have been made in several compartments of the selection plan 4 by means of several balls, the stepping of the stepping switch 25 will cause an indication of results only where an agreement exists between the selected compartment of the selection plan 4 and the position of the arm 32.

The contacts 18 are interconnected in accordance with the rules of the game for which the machine has been set up to provide difierent current connections -for the disbursement of a gain. To enable an indication of a result, result indicating relays 22 arranged below a well 23 or several of such wells are energized by a rotary selector 24 and a stepping switch 25, the circuit being closed by the contacts 8 and 18, 19. The rotary selector 24 delivers to the result indicating relay 22 a certain number of pulses, depending on the rules of the game for which the machine has been set up, so that, e.g., a result of multiple value is indicated by a plurality of tokens which can be taken from a tray 26. The stepping switch 25 operates the rotary selector 24 successively in accordance with the different chance factors so that several players have their results indicated in success1on.

After the termination of the game the pairs of contacts 8 are pivotally moved outwardly or displaced to cause the balls 9 to drop onto a plate 13' and roll into the ball trough 13. At the same time the cover plate is pushed back so that the next game can be begun.

The automatic chance game machine shown by way of example in FIGS. 4 and 5 is also constructed in the form of a box 101, on the top of which a selection plan 102 and a rotary or indicating device 103 are arranged. Below the selection plan 102, however, illuminating lamps L are disposed, which are covered by means of light wells 104 in such a manner that they can illuminate at any time only those compartments in which a selection can be made. This is particularly apparent from FIG. 5. Switches or push buttons 105, 106, 107 are arranged before the selection plan. For instance, the key 105 may be the selecting key, the key 107 may be the key for starting a rotary selector disposed in the box 101, and the switch 106 may be the switch for starting the drive motor RM. At the front end of the box 101 a coin slot 108 is provided, behind which a coin contact MK is disposed. Below the token contact a token well 109 is disposed, on the underside of which a token releasing device 110 is arranged, which is operable by means of a token releasing magnet MM.

The indicating device 103 is rotatable 'by means of the drive motor RM. The compartment contacts RK are arranged, e.g., in radial rows below the indicating device 103. The underside of the indicating device is provided with a contact bar 111. The device 112 ensures that the indicating device 103 will always be held in a position in which the rail 111 closes a row of the contacts RK.

When the automatic chance game machine has been switched on by means of the switch 106 it is prepared for making a selection by the insertion of a certain token 113. When the player then presses the key 107, the selector, which is not shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, begins to rotate and causes all illuminating lamps L to be lighted in succession and to illuminate the associated compartments of the selection plan. When the compartment is illuminated in which the player wants to make a selection, he releases the key 107 and presses the key 105 so that this compartment is considered selected. This is apparent from the fact that the compartment in which a selection has been made is dimly illuminated after the movement of the selector has been continued when the key has been released. When another coin has been inserted, another selection can be made. If an additional selection is not made, the switch 106 is changed over to start the indicating device 103. The indicating device will come to a standstill after a certain time. The result associated with the compartment in which a selection has been made can then be indicated in response, e.g., to a changeover of the switch 106 to its original position or by the operation of a rotary selector.

The automatic selector which is operable by means of a push button may be replaced by a selector which is directly operable by hand and which in that case could re.- place the key 107. In a suitable automatic arrangement the switch 106 may be omitted. The coin magnet MM, the coin receiving slot and the means for releasing the tokens may also be replaced by any of the known devices.

FIG 6 shows diagrammatically the circuit of a selector relay W which has a change-over contact w to which an illuminating lamp L is connected. The contact a is a contact of a contact path of a selector. This contact path has the reference A. A contact 'b belongs to a second contact path B of the same selector. The contact arm or brush associated with contact path B is -op erable in unison with the contact arm associated with the contact path A. The contact 1),, is connected to one contact terminal of the change-over contact w, whereas the selector relay W and the contact a are connected to the other contact terminal of this changeover contact.

When the selector is operated it comes to a position in which the contacts a and b in FIG. 6 are closed. This causes the lamp L and the selector relay W to be energized, whereby the change-over contact W5 is changed over and the lamp L is extinguished after having been lighted brightly for a short time. A continued operation of the selector will disconnect the contacts a and b whereas the selector relay W continues to be energized by meansof the lamp L which shines less brightly owing to the resistance of the selector relay W Letters A and B in FIG. 6 refer to the contact arms of a double rotary selector as is shown in FIG. 7.

The mode of operation of the circuit shown in FIG. 6 may be explained as follows:

When the contact arms A and B of the rotary selector are to be operated, the lamp L associated with a specific compartment of the selection plan should be illuminated only if this compartment has been selected. In this case the lamp is energized by closing the associated contacts a and b In this first stage the current flows from the positive terminal to the negative terminal in two parallel paths, one of which includes the contact b contact W and the associated lamp L, whereas the other includes the exciter winding W and the contact a In this first stage the lamp L will be illuminated and the eXciter winding W will be energized. The energization of the exciter winding W causes the contact w to be changed over after a short time so that the lamp L is extinguished by the exciter winding W which remains energized, provided that contact arms A and B are maintained in that position in which contacts a and b are closed. A continued movement of contact arms A and B to open contacts a and b will now cause the exciter winding W, to be connected by contact w in series with lamp L As the current required for operating a relay is higher than that required for holding it, the relay W can easily be designed so that it remains operated in spite of the reduction in current value due to its series connection with lamp L Owing to the reduced current, the lamp L will shine only dimly.

In the example shown in FIG. 7 the arrangement shown in FIG. 6 is used. Several selector relays W connected to the positive terminal of the source of current are connected each to the contacts 0 a a and to one contact terminal of a change-over contact w of the selector relay W The other contact terminal of this change-over contact is connected to one or several contacts b of a second contact path B, which has associated with it a contact arm connected to the positive terminal of the source of current. The tongue of the change-over contact w is connected to the negative terminal of the source of current by a circuit including a normally open contact w of the selector relay W a compartment contact RK associated with this selector relay, a result indicating relay Z and a motor starting switch T, and by a circuit including the compartment illuminating lamp L and a normally closed contact Z, of the result indicating relay Z consisting of a change-over switch has the drive motor RM connected thereto by a time-limit relay or a thermal contact V. In addition to the normally closed contact Z, the result indicating relay Z has a normally open contact Z which is connected in the circuit of a token releasing magnet MM.

The contact arm or brush associated with the contact The countercontact of the motor starting switch T V path A of the selector is connected by a normally open contact m of a coin relay M to a contact terminal of the selecting key St, which consists of a change-over key, the othercontact terminal of which'is connected to the coin relay M by a normally open contact m of the latter and is also connected to a coin contact MK.

, In the inoperative position shown in FIG. 7 the entire installation is deenergized. A rotation of the selector causes only the respective illuminating lamps L to shine when the associated contact b is engaged by the contact arm'for contact path B; When a coin 10 has been inserted in the inserting slot of the automatic chance game machine, the resilient coin contact MK is closed for a short time. This causes the energization of the coin relay M, which will be held energized by the normally open contact m closed by the selecting St in its position of rest even after the coin contact MK has been opened. As the second normally open contact In is closed at the same time, the insertion of the coin has prepared the automatic chance game machine for making a selection. The operation of the selector will cause the illumination of the several compartments of the selection plan by the energization of the respective illuminating lamps L connected to the contacts b of the contact path 13. When a compartment is illuminated in which the player wants to make a selection, he must press the selecting key St to energize the selector relay W associated with this compartment. The pressing of the selecting key St causes also the coin relay M to drop out because its holding circuit is interrupted. The opening of the normally open contact In with a time delay ensures the response of the selector relay W which is immediately made self-holding my the changeover of the change-over contact since the circuit of the selector relay W is closed by the change-over contact W and the compartment illuminating lamp L even after the normally open contact m has been opened; then the lamp L shines dimly. The reduction in the brightness of the respective compartment of the selection plan indicates to the player that the automatic chance game machine has registered his selection and in what compartment he has made a selection.

A renewed insertion of a coin will then enable a selection to be made in other compartments without influencing the compartments in which a selection has already been made. If a second selection is made in a compartment in which a selection has been made before, a result will not be indicated in the arrangement because only one result can be indicated for each compartment in this arrangement. It is possible, however, to make arrangements which enable the making of several selections in a compartment or to prevent the making of a selection in a compartment in which a selection has been made before. Such arrangements are possible without difiiculty within the scope ofthe invention.

If additional selections are not made, the motor starting switch T can be changed over to start the drive motor RM, in the circuit of which the thermal contact V is connected. The temperature rise of the thermal contact V causes the same to be opened after a certain time, so that the drive motor =RM comes again to a standstill. This causes one or several of the compartment contacts RK included in the circuit of the result indicating relay Z to be closed. If a selection has been made in the associated compartment of the selection plan, that normally open contact w of the energized selector relay W which lies in the same circuit is also closed when the motor starting switch is moved to its starting position, so that the result indicating relay Z responds, the lamp L of the respective compartment is extinguished because the normally open contact Z is opened and the token releasing magnet MM is energized by the normally open contact Z being closed so that the associated result is indicated by the release of a corresponding number of tokens. The opening of the normally closed contact Z causes the associated selector relay W, to drop out, whereby the result indicating relay is also deenergized and the original condition is reestablished so that a new game can begin.

Another illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown in FIG. 8, in which the arrangement according to FIG. 6 is also used. The selector relays W are jointly connected by a normally closed closed contact h of an auxiliary relay HR to the positive terminal of the source of current and are connected to the contacts a a, e1 of the contact path A of a selector. These contacts are connected to one contact terminal of a change-over contact w of the selector relay W The intermediate tongue of the change-over contact w is connected to ground by the compartment illuminating lamp L associated with this change-over contact. The other contact terminal of the change-over contact w is connected to the contact 11,, of a second contact path B of the same selector, the brush of which is connected by a normally open contact m of the coin relay M to the positive terminal of the source of current. The brush of the contact path A is connected to one terminal of the selecting key St consisting of a change-over key, the tongue of which is connected to ground by a normally open contact m of the coin relay M. The other terminal of the selecting key St is connected to the coin relay M and to a coin contact MK, which is resilient and closed for a short time when a coin is inserted. The normally open contact m of the coin relay M is connected in series with a normally closed contact I1 operable by a holding relay H and the exciter winding of the auxiliary relay HR. The holding relay H is self-holding owing to the provision of the normally open contact h which is connected in parallel to a working contact h of the auxiliary relay HR, and is connected to a normally closed contact e operable by the relay E. The relay E is connected to the last contact of a contact path D of a rotary selector D and by the brush associated with this contact path can be connected to the positive terminal of the source of current. The selector magnet of the rotary selector D is connected by a normally open contact k operable by the holding relay H to the last terminal of the contact path of a self-switching rotary selector C, which serves as a pulse generator. It is obvious that the rotary selector C may be replaced by another pulse generator. The pulse generator serves to control the indication of result and operates result indicating relays, not shown, which are provided in the result indicating device Z connected to the token releasing magnet MM or the like. The result indicating device is also connected to the brush of the contact path D of the rotary selector D, the several contacts of which are connected by the normally open contacts w of the selector relay W to the compartment contacts RK.

The indicating dial 103 contains all combinations possible in the game by logical connections between the contact pieces arranged in several circles. The contact pieces 1 to 36* of the outermost row are connected, e.g., by the several normally open contacts W12 W302 jointly to the first contact 1 of the path D In the next row of contacts 103 the contact piece 1 is connected to the contact piece 2, the contact piece 4 is connected to the contact piece 5, the contact piece 7 is connected to the contact piece 8 etc. and can be connected by a normally open contact W312 W402 to the second contact of the path D In the third row of the indicating dial 103 the contact pieces are connected in groups 1--23, 4-5-6, 789 28--2930 and can be connected by the normally open contacts W412 W502 to the third contact of the path D etc. This arrangement is continued to the normally open contact W782, which is connected to the last contact 10 0f the path D The conductive contact arm 11]. connects in its respective position all contactsRK arranged along a radius of the dial 103 and can be connected by thermal change-over switch V, a switch T and a normally open'contact h operable by the holding relay H to the source of current. The thermal change-over switch V is connected in its inoperative condition to the drive motor RM, with which the dial 103 or the contact arm 111 can be driven.

The result indicating device Z contains result indicating relays, e.g., the relays A A A each of which is associated with one of positions 1 to of the contact path D These relays are not shown in the drawing for the sake of simplicity. In each position of the rotary selector D or of the path D the result indicating relays can be energized in a pregiven combination. Each combination results in a certain result value amounting, e.'g., when the relay A is energized, to the entire grand prize, when the relays A and A are energized to half of the grand prize, when A and A are energized to one third of the grand prize, when A and A are energized to one tenth of the grand prize and when A is energized to one fifteenth. In accordance therewith the energization of the first stage of the rotary selector, which is connected to the contacts W12 W302 causes also the energization of the relay A which then causes the indication of the grand prize by means of the pulse generator. The release of a number of coins or tokens corresponding to the result may be effected by means of a token magnet MM or the like.

FIG. 8 shows the entire arrangement in a deenergized condition. If a coin is inserted, the coin contact MK is closed for a short time, whereby the coin relay M responds and holds itself by the normally open contact m being closed until the selecting key Sr is pressed. The closing of the normally open contact m completes the circuit of the compartment illuminating lamps L to cause those compartment illuminating lamps L to shine, the contact 11,, of which is engaged by the brush associated with the contact path B. By the closing of the normally open contact in the auxiliary relay HR is energized and its contact 11, interrupts the circuit of the selector relay W and causes any energized selector relays W to drop out. The closing of the normally open contact [1,. energizes the holding relay H, which by means of the normally open contact h holds itself as long as the normally closed contact e of the relay E remains closed. The energization of the holding relay H causes the normally closed contact h to open, whereby the auxiliary relay HR is deenergized and drops out, so that the contact h is again closed and the contact h is opened. The coin relay M and the holding relay H are now energized. A rotation of the selector B-A causes the several compartment illuminating lamps L to shine. When that compartment illuminating lamp is shining, in the compartment of which a stake is to be made, the selecting key St is pressed, whereby the appertaining selector relay W responds and the change-over contact w is changed over. At the same time the coin relay M drops out and the respective compartment illuminating lamp L continues to shine dimly as it is connected in series with the selector relay W The normally closed contact h remains closed because the auxiliary relay HR remains currentless since the contact 11 is open. Only when another coin has been inserted can another selection be made by pressing the selecting key. The compartment illuminating lamps L,,, in the compartments of which a selection has been made, continue to shine dimly.

When all selections have been made the drive motor RM can be started by pressing the motor switch T since the contact h is still closed. During the running of the drive motor the Winding of the thermal change-over switch V undergoes a temperature rise and this switch interrupts after some time the connection to the drive motor RM, which is thus caused to come to a standstill together with the disc 103 or pointer 111 driven by said motor. At the same time the pointer 111 or its contact strip is connected by the closed switch T and the closed contact h to the positive terminal of the source of current. The contact terminal of the pointer 111 bridges not only the compartment contacts RK lying radially one behind the other but connects the same by the closed contacts w,, of the selector relays W associated with compartments in which a selection has been made to the circuit of the result indicating mechanism whereafter the various results can be indicated by an operation of the rotory selector D. The rotary selector D is operated by the pulse generator C since the stepping magnet D of the rotary selector is energized when the pulse generator C has reached step 10 and the rotary selector is stepped by one contact of its paths. As soon as the rotary selector D has reached its tenth position, the relay E is energized by the tenth contact of the path D of the selector D whereby the holding relay H is caused to drop out. Thus the game is terminated. The dimly shining compartment illuminating lamps L associated with compartments in which a selection was made during the game continue to shine brightly until the renewed insertion of a coin causes the energization of the coin relay M and by the contact m of the latter the energization of the auxiliary relay HR because all previously energized selector relays W are caused to drop out only thereafter by the opening of the normally closed contact h Provision is also made to move the rotary selector D from the last step to the first by the energization of the auxiliary relay HR.

I claim:

1. An electrically operable automatic chance game, which comprises a plurality of compartment contacts arranged in a circle, a rotary member operable to make contact with said compartment contacts in succession, a.

motor operable to drive said rotary member, coin-operable means for preparing said motor for operation, a selection plan having a plurality of compartments, a plurality of arbitrarily operable pairs of normally open contacts, each of said pairs of normally open contacts being associated with at least one of said compartments and connected in series with at least one of said compartment contacts, selector means arbitrarily operable to close any selected one of said pairs of normally open contacts to indicate that a compartment associated therewith is selected, starting means arbitrarily operable to render the selector means inoperative and to start the motor, stopping means for automatically stopping said motor after it has been started, means protecting said stopping means from interference by a player, means for holding any selected ones of said pairs of normally open contacts closed until after said motor has been stopped, and result indicating means arranged to indicate a result when said rotory member has stopped in contact with a compartment contact connected in series with a pair of normally open contacts which has been closed.

2. A chance game as set forth in claim 1, in which each of said compartments is formed with a hole and one of said pairs of normally open contacts is disposed below each of said holes and forms a part of a pressure-operable switch, said selector means comprising a weight adapted to be inserted into any of said holes, said pressure-operable switches being movable out of the range of the holes to release said weight.

3. A chance game as set forth in claim 2, in which said weight consists of a ball.

4. A chance game as .set forth in claim 1, in which said selection plan is divided according to a system of coordinates and provided with control lamps and said pairs of normally open contacts comp-rise pressure-operable switches arranged according to the same system of coordinates.

5. A chance game as set forth in claim 1, in which said compartment contacts comprise fixed contacts arranged in rows and said rotary member comprises a contact bar adapted to engage said rows in succession.

6. A chance game as set forth in claim 5, which comprises a rotatable disc carrying said contact bar and in which the rows of fixed contacts extend radially with respect to the axis of rotation of the disc.

7. A chance game as set forth in claim 1, in which said motor is an electric motor and said stopping means comprise a thermo-responsive contact connected in series with 1 1 1 said motor and arranged to limit the running time thereof.

'8. A chance game as set forth in claim 7, in which said rotary member comprises a contact strip adapted to make contact with said compartment contacts in succession and said thermo-responsive contact consists of a change-over contact adapted to connect alternatively said motor or said contact strip to a source of current.

9. A chance game as set forth in claim 1, in which said compartment contacts are stationary and said rotary member carries movable contacts, and Which comprises stopping means for stopping said rotary member in a position in which each of said movable contacts is in registry with a compartment contact.

10. A chance game as set forth in claim 9, in which said stopping means is an electromagnetic device.

11. A chance game as set forth in claim 1, in which said selector means comprise a movable contact element and a plurality of stationary contacts, a plurality of selector relays each of which is connected with one of said sta tionary contacts and adapted to operate one of said pairs of normally open contacts, a selecting key connected in series with said movable contact element and operable to energize the selector relay connected to that stationary contact which is contacted at a time by said movable contact element, each of said stationary contacts being associated with at least one compartment of the selection .plan, and a plurality of lamps each of which is adapted to illuminate one of said compartments and arranged to be energized when the stationary contact associated with said compartment is contacted by said movable contact element.

12. A chance game as set forth in claim 11, in which said selector relays are arranged as self-holding relays.

13. A chance game as set forth in claim 11, which comprises a motor for driving said movable contact element and a push button for controlling said motor.

14. A chance game as set forth in claim 11, in which stationary contacts are arranged to form a first contact path and which comprises a second contact path consisting of a plurality of stationary contacts, a second movable contact element adapted to contact at least one con-tact of said stationary contacts of said second contact path at a time, a plurality of change-over contacts having first and second contact terminals, each of said change-over contacts being operable by one of said selector relays, said first contact terminal of each of said change-over contacts being connected to at least one of the stationary contacts of said second contact path, said second contact terminal of each of said change-over contacts being connected to at least one of said stationary contacts of said first contact path and to the selector relay associated with said changeover contact, each of said change-over contacts comprising a tongue, said chance game comprising a source of current having first and second terminals, said tongue of each of said change-over contacts being adapted to be connected through the intermediary of at least one of said lamps to said first terminal of said source of current, said selecting key being operable to connect the movable contact element associated with said first contact path to said first terminal of said source of current, said first contact terminal of each of said change-over contacts being adapted to be connected to said second terminal of said source of current by means of said movable contact element associated with said second contact path, and said second contact terminal of each of said change-over contacts being adapted to be connected by the selector relay associated therewith to said first terminal of said source of current. 15. A chance game as set forth in claim 11, which comprises a normally open contact connected in series with said selecting key and said movable element and adapted to be closed by the insertion of a coin.

16. A chance game as set forth in claim 15, which comprises a resilient coin contact arranged to be closed by 12 the insertion of a coin, and a coin relay arranged to be energized when said coin contact is closed and to close said normally open contact when energized.

17. A chance game as set forth in claim 16, in which said selecting key consists of a resilient change-over key having first and second contacts and resilient means tending to close said key at said first contact, and which comprises a circuit connected to said first contact and including in series With said coin relay a normally open contact operable by said coin relay, said second contact being connected to said stationary contacts.

18. A chance game as set forth in claim 11, which comprises a plurality of circuits required for the operation of the chance game, and a holding key arranged to be energized by the insertion of a coin and to hold all said circuits closed when it is thus energized, said holding relay being adapted to be deenergized only after the termination of each game.

19. A chance game as set forth in claim 1, in which said motor is an electric motor and said stopping means comprise a thermocouple arranged to be heated by said motor and adapted to interrupt the energization of said motor after a predetermined temperature rise caused by the energization of said motor.

20. A chance game as set forth in claim 1, in which said stopping means comprise a time-limit relay connected in circuit with said motor and arranged to limit the running time thereof.

21. A chance game as set forth in claim 2, in which said pressure-operable switches are pivotally mounted.

22. A chance game as set forth in claim 2, in which said pressure-operable switches are slidably mounted.

23. A chance game as set forth in claim 2, in which said starting means comprise a plate consisting of transparent material and having an arrangement of holes similar to that of said holes in said compartments, which plate is slidably mounted over said plan and movable between a selecting position in which said holes in said plate are in registry with corresponding holes in said compartments and a running position in which said holes are out of registry, and means for controlling the energization of said motor, said last-mentioned means being coupled to said plate and arranged to cause the motor to be deenergized unless said plate is in said running position.

24. A chance game as set forth in claim 1, in which each of said compartments has a chance factor associated with it and said result indicating means are arranged to indicate a result the value of which corresponds to the chance factor associated with a compartment which is associated with a closed pair of normally open contacts in series with the compartment contact with which the rotary member is in contact when stopped.

25. A chance game as set forth in claim 24, in which said rotary member comprises a disc in which a number of contact pieces are arranged radially one behind the other in circular rows, and which comprises means electrically connecting said contact pieces to each other and to the arbitrarily operable normally open contacts in accordance with said chance factors.

26. A chance game asset forth in claim 24, in which said result indicating means comprise a plurality of token releasing relays, each of which is operable to cause the release of a different number of tokens, and a rotary selector for selectively operating said relays, said rotary selector having a plurality of contacts, each of which is connected to those of said pairs of normally open contacts which are associated with compartments having equal chance factors.

27. A chance game as set forth in claim 24, in which said result indicating means comprise a rotary selector adapted to deliver a pulse signal corresponding to said chance factor, and token releasing relays energizable by said rotary selector.

28. A chance game as set forth in claim 24, in which 13 said result indicating means comprise a rotary selector, 2,333,002 a stepping switch associated with said rotary selector, and 2,780,461 calculating relays energizable by said stepping switch. 2,883,193 References Cited in the file of this patent 5 2902283 UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,175,892 Greene Oct. 10, 1939 211,283 2,177,066 Huenergardt Oct. 24, 1939 9 2,192,779 Swan et a1 Mar. 5, 1940 798,879

14 I Goloborodko Oct. 26, 1943 Ryan Feb. 5, 1957 Iannone et a1 Apr. 21, 1959 Chalfin Sept. 1, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain Feb. 21, 1924 Germany Mar. 26, 1930 Great Britain July 30, 1958 

